Everything I had once known seemed to be gone. Nothing would stay in my mind as each part of me threatened to slip away. Blackness and numb was all I could perceive, which was worse than the pain. I could remember the pain. It had attacked me and crushed my mind with its staggering weight. My effort to keep to keep it at bay had failed. The pain had been replaced by numb, but I couldn't fight it. The numb was too strong, too powerful. I had given up long ago.

Other than the numb and pain, I felt lonely. I was completely alone; I felt helpless. Fighting just seemed hopeless by now, but some part of me was conscious of pushing. It was a strange sensation. It was like there were two parts of me. The first part had given up, but the other section of my body refused to let the blackness swallow her. I pondered this for a moment as I searched for my lost memories. There had to be a reason why a part of me couldn't give up. Flashes of lost memories came into my mind.

The scenery was absolutely beautiful; it was like a dream. Ginormous trees surrounded the clearing, which was filled with flowers of every color. Lilacs, tulips, and red roses were clumped in between the tall grasses. Vines hung formed an overhang. He pulled me under a giant oak and I laughed at—

The walls were a deep shade of blue and the rug was soft under my bare soles. I watched silently as he slept. His tan face was so relaxed—

"Anna," He whispered my name and I replied with his—

The information bombarded me; I remembered. Jared was his name. He was the reason I had to keep fighting. I screeched in frustration but knew no one heard me. My real voice was broken and unusable. The limbs once in my control now lie useless somewhere out of my reach. Jared was real too, but he was unreachable from where I was. Where was I anyway?

My thoughts rebelled against me as I tried desperately to figure out how I had gotten this way. Who had placed me in this numbing prison? Memories flashed at me again, but they were now clearer.

The ice on the road was slick, but his hand was warm in mine. The car in front of us swerved slightly and I thought nothing of it—

Red lights danced across my closed lids. A siren blared in the distance and someone was telling me to stay with them, but I couldn't. His voice was strained and his hands were shaking as they stroked my brown curls. "Anna, don't you dare leave me; don't you dare leave me right now." His voice shook and I struggled to—

The night came rushing back to me and I sobbed. I remembered every detail now. We had been driving home from a movie, and the road was very icy. I wasn't concerned though; I was confident in my driving skills. I wasn't sixteen anymore, and eighteen meant two years driving experience. Jared had turned the car light on in order to find his favorite baseball hat, which he had lost in the depths of my blue Ford truck. Taking my eyes off the road for a few seconds, I failed to notice the swerving car in front of us. It skids toward us and all I remembered after that was the pain. After that was when this had happened, when I had been sucked into this prison. My instincts told me to fight my way out. I sighed internally, summoning all of my strength. For Jared, I would do this for him, for us.

I tackled the darkness head on, trying to crush it as it had done to me. My strength wavered as the numb made a counter attack. Bits of numb seeped into my consciousness, but I fought them off. Red spots formed around the black, burning holes in the brick wall that kept me prisoner. I screeched in exasperation and pushed with all of my will. I had to win.

Bright lights assaulted my vision as I opened my lids. I scanned the room of the hospital until I found him. Jared was asleep on the recliner beside my bed. It looked like he hadn't slept in days, and there was a thick bandage on his head. His black hair was sticking out in every direction and his mouth was open wide. I chuckled softly and closed my eyes. The sound made him stir and his green eyes snapped open.

"Anna?" His voice was tense. I smiled at him and whispered, "Jared." My voice was hoarse from disuse and I cleared my throat. Jared smiled at me and put a finger softly on my lips.

"It's great to see those blue eyes again. I missed them." I chuckled and replied, "It's great to be awake."

I did it; I thought victoriously, I found my way home.

The author would like to thank you for your continued support. Your review has been posted.